Tax strategy and asset protection for business owners go hand in hand. In this session from our Tax Strategy & Asset Protection for Business Owners Webinar, Laura Dohanes, CPA and founder of My CPA Pro, explains how to integrate entity structuring with proactive tax planning. She shows why documentation, timing, and intercompany agreements are the missing pieces that make protection real—and how aligning them reduces audits, surprise taxes, and unnecessary exposure.
Watch Here the Laura Dohanes talking about Tax Strategy and Asset Protection for Business Owners
Asset protection often focuses on legal walls, but those walls can crumble if the paper trail doesn’t line up. Laura emphasizes that protection fails without records, and tax strategy fails when structure and timing are ignored. She demonstrates how to align ownership (solo, spouses, partners), distributions (W-2 wages, draws, dividends), and intercompany agreements so they work together instead of creating red flags.
One recurring mistake Laura sees is leaving too much inside the operating company. She explains why operating entities should stay “light,” while valuable assets—such as intellectual property, equipment, or real estate—should be held in separate entities. Intercompany leases and licensing agreements, documented at reasonable terms, not only strengthen liability protection but also create clear, defensible deductions.
She stresses that moving assets between entities must be handled carefully. Transfers should be documented with basis, valuation, and timing in mind to avoid creating taxable events or audit issues. The message: don’t wait until there’s pressure—set the structure correctly from the beginning and update it as you grow.
Laura drills into the records that auditors and courts actually look for: resolutions for major decisions, consistent titles on deeds and vehicles, invoices and leases that match bank movements, and a steady tax calendar that tracks estimated payments. She also addresses owner compensation—why choosing between W-2 wages and shareholder distributions is not just about taxes, but also about consistency in your protection plan.
The bottom line: documentation isn’t busywork. It’s the evidence that keeps your plan defensible—whether in front of the IRS or in a lawsuit.
Laura Dohanes, CPA, MBA, is the founder of My CPA Pro™, a national tax strategy and advisory firm serving entrepreneurs and high-net-worth business owners. For over 20 years, she has specialized in proactive tax reduction strategies, entity structuring, and long-term wealth planning. Her firm’s mission is simple: help business owners protect profits, reduce taxes, and use the law to build lasting wealth.
Laura speaks regularly on advanced tax strategies, entity structuring, and multi-entity planning. She is known for making complex rules simple and showing entrepreneurs how to turn tax law into an advantage instead of a burden.
For IRS guidance on business entity choices and compliance, see the IRS guide to business structures.
Good asset protection isn’t just about defense—it’s about making sure your tax strategy, entity structure, and documentation all work together. If you want a plan that protects profits and minimizes taxes, we’re here to help.
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